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THE CORAL ISLAND 



My father placed me under the charge of 
a merchant captain 










^she 

CORAL ISLAND 


An episode from Robert Michael 
Ballantyne’s famous tale of the 
South Seas , retold for 
Story-Teller's House 

By 

IRA WILDER 

Drawings by 
Theodore Kent 

W 


THOMAS S. ROCKWELL COMPANY 
CHICAGO 
1930 
















PZi 

C<r 


Copyright, 1930, by 

THOMAS S. ROCKWELL COMPANY 

CHICAGO 


Printed in United States of America 


©CIA 33385 


JAN ?8 !33! 



CONTENTS 


I Wreck of the Good Ship Arrow 9 

All aboard for the South Seas!—I ma\e 
acquaintances—a wild storm and a ship¬ 
wreck 

II Three Boys on a Coral Island 13 

My two companions and I survey our king¬ 
dom—cocoanuts and nectar — ]ac\ maizes a 
fire—the roaring surf for a lullaby 

III Coral Gardens Undersea 22 

We explore a beautiful garden — ]ac\ snatches 
a breakfast—a scare—we find a bread tree 

IV The Fight With a Shark 27 

After big game — a ferocious shar\ — we 
escape in the nic\ of time 

V Waterspouts and Pigs 36 

We go exploring—Veteran has the laugh 
turned on him—a squealing tribe 

VI The Battle of the Savages 45 

We sight the cannibals—a fight and a mas¬ 
sacre—three boys to the rescue 

VII The Last of Our Island 60 

We play at host—the grateful savages offer 
a ride—we meet a white man—goodbye to 
the South Seas! 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 


My father placed me under the charge of a merchant 

captain 2 

My other companion was Peter kin Gay 10 

The ship was now near the rocks 12 

Now we hastened along the white beach 16 

He bounded up the tall stem like a squirrel 18 

In a few seconds the tinder began to smoke 21 

An enormous rock came crashing through the shrubbery 25 
After an hour's work, we had cut down the trunk and 
launched it 28 

'7 see a fellow at least a foot long down there* 30 

"Haul in your line, Peter kin; it's a shark !” 31 

The monster's snout rubbed against the log as it passed 33 
“I shall do more execution with a spear" 37 

A fierce spout of water burst between Peterkin's legs 40 
At the same instant. Jack’s bow twanged 43 

"We must hide if they land here" 46 

Their short paddles flashed like meteors in the water 47 
Most of the men wielded clubs of enormous size and 
curious shapes 50 

A dreadful feeling of horror crept over my heart 52 

With one bound he was in the midst of them 55 

At the same time he swung his ponderous club at the 
head of his foe 57 

Peterkin and / set the prisoners free 59 








































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CHAPTER I 


WRECK OF THE GOOD SHIP ARROW 

O F ALL the places of which I, Ralph Rover, 
had ever heard, none captivated and charmed 
my imagination so much as the Coral Islands 
of the Southern Seas. I was an apprentice to a vessel 
in the English coasting trade, and so had opportunity 
to listen to stirring tales by many seamen who had 
traveled to almost every quarter of the globe. It 
was their accounts of thousands of beautiful fertile 
islands formed by the tiny coral insect, where sum¬ 
mer reigned nearly all the year around, which fixed 
my resolution, when I reached the age of fifteen, to 
make a voyage to the South Seas. My father, after 
a great deal of urging, placed me under the charge 
of an old messmate of his own, a merchant captain, 
who was on the point of sailing to the South Seas in 
his ship, the Arrow. 

It was a bright, beautiful, warm day when our 
ship spread her canvas to the breeze, and sailed for 
the regions of the south. Oh, how my heart bounded 
with delight as I listened to the merry chorus of the 
sailors, while they hauled at the ropes and got in the 
anchor! The captain shouted—the men ran to obey 


9 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


io 


—the noble ship bent over to the breeze, and the 
shore gradually faded from my view, while I stood 
looking on with a kind of feeling that the whole was 
a delightful dream. 

‘There, lass,” cried a broad-shouldered jack-tar, 
giving the fluke of the anchor a hearty slap with his 
hand after the housing was completed—“there, lass, 
take a good nap now, for we shan’t ask you to kiss 
the mud again for many a long day to come!” 

And so it was. That anchor did not “kiss the 
mud” for many long days afterwards; and when at 
last it did, it was for the last time! 

Two of the boys in the ship became my special 
favorites. Jack Martin was a tall, strapping, broad- 
shouldered youth of eighteen, with a handsome, 
good-humored, firm face. He had had a good educa¬ 
tion, was clever and hearty and lion-like in his ac¬ 
tions, but mild and quiet in disposition. My other 
companion was Peterkin Gay. He was little, quick, 
funny, decidedly mischievous, and about fourteen 
years old. We three became the best and stanchest 
friends that ever tossed together on the stormy waves. 

On the first part of our voyage, we had the usual 
amount of rough weather and calm. We saw many 
strange fish rolling in the sea, and I was greatly de¬ 
lighted one day by seeing a shoal of flying-fish pur¬ 
sued by dolphins dart out of the water and skim 
through the air about a foot above the surface. When 




My other companion 
was Peterkin Gay 



WRECK OF THE GOOD SHIP ARROW 


11 


we approached Cape Horn, at the southern extremity 
of America, the weather became cold and stormy, 
and the sailors began to tell stories about the furious 
gales and the dangers of that terrible cape. 

“Cape Horn,” said one, “is the most horrible head¬ 
land I ever doubled. I’ve sailed ’round it twice al¬ 
ready, and both times the ship was a’most blow’d 
out of the water.” 

“And I’ve been ’round it once,” said anodier, “an’ 
that time the sails were split, and the ropes frozen 
in the blocks, so that they wouldn’t work, and we 
was all but lost.” 

“And I’ve beea ’round it no times at all,” cried 
Peterkin, with an impudent wink of his eye, “an’ 
that time I was blow’d inside out!” 

Nevertheless, we passed the dreaded cape without 
much rough weather, and, in the course of a few 
weeks afterwards, were sailing gently before a warm 
tropical breeze over the Pacific Ocean. But one 
night, soon after we entered the tropics, an awful 
storm burst upon our ship. The first squall of wind 
carried away two of our masts and left only the fore¬ 
mast standing. Even this, however, was more than 
enough, for we did not dare to hoist a rag of sail on 
it. For five days the tempest raged in all its fury. 
Everything was swept off the decks except one small 
boat The steersman was lashed to the wheel, lest 
he should be washed away, and wc all gave ourselves 


12 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


up for lost. The ship was now very near the rocks. 
The men were ready to launch the boat, with the 
captain beside them giving orders, when a tremen¬ 
dous wave came towards us, falling on the deck with 
a crash like thunder. Jack, Peterkin, and I together 
were swept into the bow and knocked against an 
oar which we eagerly grasped hold of. At the same 
moment the ship struck, the foremast broke off close 
to the deck and went over the side, carrying the 
boat and men along with it. Our oar got entangled 
with the wreck, and Jack seized an axe to cut it free, 
but, owing to the motion of the ship, he missed the 
cordage and struck the axe deep into the oar. An¬ 
other wave, however, washed it clear of the wreck, 
and the next instant we were struggling in the wild 
sea. Then I became insensible. 

On recovering my consciousness, I found myself 
lying on a bank of soft grass, under the shelter of an 
overhanging rock, with Peterkin on his knees by 
my side, tenderly bathing my temples with water, 
and trying to stop the blood that flowed from a 



The ship was now 
near the roc\s 




CHAPTER II 


THREE BOYS ON A CORAL ISLAND 

A S I lay still for a while, regaining my strength, 
I learned from Jack the story of our escape 
from the sea after we had plunged from the 
ship’s deck. The oar had struck my head, nearly 
stunning me, so that I grasped Peterkin round the 
neck. Jack said that I pushed the telescope, which 
I was carrying at the moment, and to which I clung 
as if it had been my life, against Peterkin’s mouth; 
but at this point Peterkin interrupted the recital. 

“Pushed it against my mouth!” he ejaculated, 
“say crammed it down my throat. Why, there’s a 
distinct mark of the brass rim on the back of my 
gullet at this moment!” 

“Well, well, be that as it may,” continued Jack, 
“you clung to him, Ralph, till I feared you really 
would choke him; but I saw that he had a good hold 
of the oar, so I exerted myself to the utmost to push 
you towards the shore of this island, which we luckily 
reached without much trouble, for the water inside 
the reef is quite calm.” 

“But the captain and crew, what of them?” I im 
quired anxiously. 


13 


M 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


Jack shook his head. 

“Are they lost?*’ 

“No, they are not lost, I hope, but I fear there is 
not much chance of their being saved. The ship 
struck at the very tail of the island on which we are 
cast. When the boat was tossed into the sea it fortu¬ 
nately did not upset, although it shipped a good deal 
of water, and all the men managed to scramble into 
it; but before they could get the oars out the gale 
carried them past the point and away to leeward of 
the island. But as I’ve read that these South Sea 
Islands are scattered about in thousands over the sea, 
I believe they’re almost sure to fall in with one of 
them before long.” 

“I’m sure I hope so,” said Peterkin earnestly. “But 
what has become of the wreck, Jack? I saw you 
clambering up the rocks there while I was watch¬ 
ing Ralph. Did you say she had gone to pieces?” 

“She filled and went down away to leeward of this 
island,” replied Jack. 

Well, we three had now landed on a Coral Is¬ 
land, although more suddenly than we had dreamed 
when we glimpsed them longingly from the ship 
as it passed their dazzling white shores. We were 
silent for a long time, and I have no doubt that each 
was revolving in his mind our extraordinary posi¬ 
tion. For my part, I cannot say that my reflections 
were very agreeable. I was wondering whether our 


THREE BOYS ON A CORAL ISLAND 


T 5 


island was inhabited. If it should be, 1 felt certain, 
from all I had heard of South Sea Islanders, that we 
should be toasted alive and eaten. If it should turn 
out to be uninhabited, I fancied that it would not be 
long until we should be starved to death. But it 
seems we were not all taking such a dark view of 
the situation as I did. 

“I have made up my mind that it’s the best thing 
that ever happened to us,” at length exclaimed Peter- 
kin, “and the most splendid prospect that ever lay 
before three jolly young tars. We’ve got an island 
all to ourselves. We’ll take possession in the name 
of the king; we’ll go and enter the service of its black 
inhabitants. Of course we’ll rise, naturally, to the 
top of affairs. White men always do in savage coun¬ 
tries. You shall be king, Jack; Ralph, prime mini¬ 
ster; and I shall be-” 

‘The court jester,” volunteered Jack. 

But we became more serious as we considered the 
possibilities of life on a desert island. Peterkin drew 
forth from his pocket a small penknife with a broken 
blade to show that we had one tool, even if a very 
poor one. We now seated ourselves upon a rock and 
began to examine into our personal property. The 
result of the search was as follows: an old German- 
silver pencil-case without any lead, a piece of whip¬ 
cord about six yards long, a small sail-maker’s needle, 
a ship’s telescope, a brass ring of Jack’s, a little bit of 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


tinder, our oar with a bit of hoop-iron on the end 
of it, the axe which had stuck to the oar, and finally, 
the clothes on our backs. 

“Now, lads,” said Jack, “I propose that we go to 
the tail of the island, where the ship struck before 
it foundered, and see if anything else has been thrown 
ashore. I don’t expect anything, but it is well to see, 
and the distance is only a quarter of a mile. When 
we get back here it will be time to have our supper.” 

“Agreed!” cried Peterkin and I together, and with 
that we all three rose and hastened down to the 
beach. I still felt a little weak from loss of blood, so 
that my companions soon began to leave me behind; 
but Jack perceived this and, with his usual consid¬ 
erate good nature, turned back to help me. This 
was the first time that I had looked well about me 
since landing, as the spot where I had been laid was 
covered with thick bushes which almost hid the coun¬ 
try from our view. As we now emerged from among 
these and walked down the sandy beach together, I 
cast my eyes about, and, truly, my heart glowed 
within me and my spirits rose at the beautiful pros¬ 
pect which I beheld on every side. 

The gale had suddenly died away, just as if it had 
blown furiously till it dashed our ship upon the rocks, 
and had nothing more to do after accomplishing 
that. The island on which we stood was hilly, and 
covered almost everywhere with the most beautiful 



Now we hastened 
along the white 
beach 





THREE BOYS ON A CORAL ISLAND 


*7 


and richly colored trees, bushes, and shrubs, none of 
which I knew by name at that time, except, indeed, 
the cocoanut palms, which I recognized at once 
from the many pictures that I had seen of them be¬ 
fore I left home. A sandy beach of glistening white¬ 
ness lined this bright green shore, and upon it there 
fell a gentle ripple of the sea. This last astonished 
me much, for I recollected that at home the sea used 
to fall in huge billows on the shore long after a storm 
had subsided. But on casting my glance out to sea 
the cause became apparent. About a mile distant 
from the shore I saw the great billows of the ocean 
rolling like a green wall, and falling with a long, 
loud roar, upon a low coral reef, where they were 
dashed into white foam and flung up in clouds of 
spray. This spray sometimes flew exceedingly high, 
and, every here and there, a beautiful rainbow was 
formed for a moment among the falling drops. 

Now as we hastened along the white beach, it sud¬ 
denly came into Peterkin’s mind that we had nothing 
to eat except the wild berries which grew in pro¬ 
fusion at our feet. 

“What shall we do, Jack?” said he, with a rueful 
look; “perhaps they may be poisonous!” 

“No fear,” replied Jack, confidently; “I saw one 
or two strange birds eating them just a few minutes 
ago, and what won’t kill the birds won’t kill us. But 
look up there, Peterkin,” he continued, pointing to 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


18 



the branched head of a cocoanut palm, “There are 
nuts for us in all stages.” 

The nuts had scarcely been pointed out to Peterkin 
when he bounded up the tall stem of the tree like a 
squirrel, and in a few minutes returned with three 
nuts, each as large as a man’s head. 

“And now if you are thirsty,” said Jack, “jump up 
that tree and bring down a green, unripe nuL” 

“Now,” he said, as Peterkin obeyed, “first I’ll cut 
off the rind with my trusty axe—see, it is covered 
with a hard shell at least an inch thick. Then you 
cut a hole in the end with your penknife and clap 
it to your mouth, old fellow.” 

Peterkin did as he was directed, and we both burst 
into uncontrollable laughter at the changes that in¬ 
stantly passed over his expressive countenance. No 
sooner had he put the nut to his mouth, and thrown 
back his head in order to catch what came out of it, 
than his eyes opened to twice their ordinary size with 
astonishment, while his throat moved vigorously in 
the act of swallowing. 

“Nectar! perfect nectar! I say, only taste that!” 
said he, turning to me and holding the nut to my 
mouth. I immediately drank, and certainly I was 
much surprised at the delightful liquid that flowed 
copiously down my throat. It was extremely cool, 
and had a sweet taste, mingled with acid; in fact, 
it was the likest thing to lemonade I ever tasted. 


He bounded up the 
tall stem li\e a 
squirrel 







THREE BOYS ON A CORAL ISLAND 


l 9 


“Jack,” queried Peterkin, “how do you happen to 
be so well posted on everything?” 

“I never saw or tasted a cocoanut in my life be¬ 
fore,” answered Jack, “except those sold in shops; 
but I once read that green nuts contain that stuff.” 

“And pray,” asked Peterkin, “what sort of 'stuff’ 
does the ripe nut contain ?” 

“A hollow kernel,” answered Jack, “with a liquid 
milk in it; but it does not satisfy thirst so well as 
hunger. It is very wholesome food, I believe ” 

“Meat and drink on the same tree!” cried Peter¬ 
kin; “washing in the sea, lodging on the ground,— 
and all for nothing! My dear boys, we’re set up for 
life; it must be the ancient Paradise,—hurrah!” and 
Peterkin tossed his cocoanut in the air and ran along 
the beach hallooing like a madman with delight. 

We had now come to the point of rocks on which 
the ship had struck, but did not find a single article, 
although we searched carefully. It was beginning 
to grow dark when we returned to our encampment. 
We therefore hastened to cut down a quantity of 
boughs and broad leaves with which we erected a 
sort of rustic bower in which to sleep, sheltered from 
the night dews or any rain that might fall. When 
we had strewed the floor with leaves and dry grass, 
we bethought ourselves of supper. 

But it now occurred to us, for the first time, that 
we had no means of making a fire. 


20 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


“Now, there’s a fix!—what shall we do?” said 
Peterkin, while we both turned our eyes to Jack, 
to whom we always looked in our difficulties. Jack 
seemed deeply perplexed. 

“There are flints enough, no doubt, on the beach,” 
said he, “but they are of no use at all without a steel. 
However, we must try.” 

So saying, he went to the beach, and soon returned 
with two flints. On one of these he placed the tinder 
and attempted to ignite it; but it was with great diffi¬ 
culty that a very small spark was struck out of the 
flints, and the tinder, being a bad, hard piece, would 
not catch. He then tried the bit of hoop iron, which 
would not strike fire at all; and after that the back 
of the axe, with no better success. During all these 
trials Peterkin sat with his hands in his pockets, gaz¬ 
ing with a most melancholy visage at our comrade, 
his face growing longer and more miserable at each 
successive failure. 

“Oh dear!” he sighed, “I would not care a button 
for the cooking of our victuals,—perhaps they don’t 
need it,—but it’s so dismal to eat one’s supper in the 
dark. Oh, I have it!” he cried, starting up; “the spy¬ 
glass,—the big glass at the end is a burning-glass!” 

“You forget that we have no sun,” said I. 

Peterkin was silent. In his sudden recollection of 
the telescope he had quite overlooked the absence of 
the sun. 


THREE BOYS ON A CORAL ISLAND 


21 


“Ah, boys, I’ve got it now!” exclaimed Jack, rising 
and cutting a branch from a neighboring bush, which 
he stripped of its leaves. “I remember seeing this 
done at home. Hand me the bit of whip-cord.” 

With the cord and branch Jack soon formed a bow. 
Then he cut a piece, about three inches long, off the 
end of a dead branch, which he pointed at the two 
ends. Round this he passed the cord of the bow, 
and placed one end against his chest, which was 
protected from its point by a chip of wood. The 
other point he placed against the bit of tinder, and 
then began to saw vigorously with the bow, just as a 
blacksmith does with his drill while boring a hole 
in a piece of iron. In a few seconds the tinder began 
to smoke; in less than a minute it caught fire; and in 
less than a quarter of an hour we were drinking our 
lemonade and eating cocoanuts around a fire that 
would have roasted an entire sheep, while the smoke, 
flames, and sparks, flew up among the broad leaves 
of the overhanging palm trees, and cast a warm glow 
upon our leafy bower. 

That night the starry sky looked down through the 
gently rustling trees upon our slumber, and the dis¬ 
tant roaring of the surf upon the coral reef was our 
lullaby. 


In a few seconds the 
tinder began to 
smo\e 




CHAPTER III 


CORAL GARDENS UNDERSEA 

W HEN I awoke on the morning after the ship¬ 
wreck I did not recollect where I was for 
some moments during which I looked up 
into the bright sky and sniffed the scented air. Then 
I beheld Peterkin beside me, yawning and rubbing 
his eyes. He gazed slowly around, till, observing 
the calm sea through an opening in the bushes, he 
started up suddenly as if he had received an electric 
shock, uttered a vehement shout, flung off his gar¬ 
ments, and rushed over the white sands into the 
water. The cry awoke Jack, who on seeing Peter- 
kin likewise bounded to his feet and dashed after 
him into the water with such force as quite to envelop 
Peterkin in a shower of spray. Jack was a remark¬ 
ably good swimmer and diver, so that after his 
plunge we saw no sign of him for nearly a minute; 
after which he suddenly emerged, with a cry of joy, 
a good many yards out from the shore. 

“Come on in, Ralph,” he called, and I, too, hastily 
made ready to imitate Jack’s vigorous example. 

While Peterkin enjoyed himself in the shallow 
water and in running along the beach. Jack and I 


22 


OORAL GARDENS UNDERSEA 


swam out into the deep water, and occasionally dived 
for stones. I shall never forget my surprise and 
delight on first beholding the bottom of the sea. The 
water within the reef was as calm as a pond; and 
as there was no wind, it was quite clear from the 
surface to the bottom, so that we could see down 
easily even at a depth of twenty or thirty yards. 
When Jack and I dived in shallower water, we ex¬ 
pected to have found sand and stones, instead of 
which we found ourselves in what appeared to be 
an enchanted garden. 

The whole of the bottom of the lagoon, as we 
called the calm water within the reef, was covered 
with coral of every shape, size, and hue.« Some por¬ 
tions were formed like large mushrooms; others ap¬ 
peared like the brain of a man, having stalks or necks 
attached to them; but the most common kind was 
a species of brandling coral, and some portions were 
of a lovely pale-pink color, others pure white. Among 
this there grew large quantities of sea-weed of the 
richest hues imaginable, and of the most graceful 
forms; while innumerable fishes—blue, red, yellow, 
green, and striped—sported in and out amongst the 
flower-beds of this submarine garden, and did not 
appear to be at all afraid of our approaching them. 

We darted to the surface for breath and took the 
second dive down, keeping close together under 
water. I was greatly surprised to find that we could 


24 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


stay down much longer than I ever recollect having 
done in our seas at home,—I believe owing to the 
heat of the water. When Jack reached the bottom, 
he grasped the coral stems, and crept along on his 
hands and knees, peeping under the sea-weed and 
among the rocks. I observed him also pick up one 
or two large oysters, and retain them in his grasp; 
so I also gathered a few. Suddenly he made a grasp 
at a fish with blue and yellow stripes on its back, and 
actually touched its tail, but did not catch it. At this 
he turned towards me and attempted to smile; but 
no sooner had he done so than he sprang like an 
arrow to the surface, where, on following him, I 
found him gasping and coughing, and spitting water 
from his mouth. In a few minutes he recovered, 
and we both turned to swim ashore. 

“Here’s breakfast,” he called to Peterkin, giving 
him the oysters to split open while he and I put on 
our clothes. “They’ll agree with the cocoanuts ex¬ 
cellently, I have no doubt.” 

We had no difficulty this morning in making a 
fire to roast our oysters, as our burning-glass was an 
admirable one. After breakfast we decided to make 
an excursion to the top of the mountains of the in¬ 
terior, in order to obtain a better view of our island. 
We first took the precaution of arming our¬ 
selves, Jack with the axe, and Peterkin and I with 
clubs cut off a species of very hard tree which grew 


CORAL GARDENS UNDERSEA 


25 


near at hand, as we knew not what dangers might 
befall us on the way. Our only adventure, however, 
lay in hearing a strange pattering or rumbling sound 
as we advanced single-file up a heavily wooded 
valley. We all stood still in alarm, and my thoughts 
were centered on all I had ever heard or read of wild 
beasts and savages, torturings at the stake, roasting 
alive, and such like horrible things. Suddenly the 
pattering noise increased with tenfold violence. It 
was followed by a fearful crash among the bushes, 
which was rapidly repeated, as if some gigantic ani¬ 
mal were bounding towards us. In another moment 
an enormous rock came crashing through the shrub¬ 
bery, followed by a cloud of dust and small stones, 
and flew close past the spot where we stood, carrying 
bushes and young trees along with it. 

“Pooh! is that 311?” exclaimed Peterkin, wiping 
the sweat from his brow. “Why I thought all the 
wild men and beasts in the South Sea Islands were 
charging down on us. And it’s only a stone that 
got uneasy.” 

On our way home we discovered a tree which Jack 
called the celebrated breadfruit tree. It is one of 
the most valuable in the islands of the south, he said, 
as it bears two or more crops of fruit a year and the 
fruit, very much like wheaten bread in appearance, 
constitutes the principal food of many of the is¬ 
landers who live in these parts. 


An enormous roc\ 
came crashing 
through the 
shrubbery 



THE CORAL ISLAND 


2f> 


“So,* 1 said Peterkin, “we seem to have everything 
ready prepared to our hands on this wonderful is- 
land,—lemonade ready bottled in nuts, and loaf- 
bread growing on the trees!” 

“Moreover,” continued Jack, “the breadfruit tree 
affords a capital gum, which serves the natives for 
pitching their canoes; the bark of the young branches 
is made by them into cloth; and of the wood, which 
is durable and of a good color, they build their houses. 
So you see, lads, that we have no lack of material here 
to make us comfortable, if we are clever enough to 
make use of it. 

We had found no signs of inhabitants on our 
island. It was large,—we estimated it at about ten 
miles in diameter—and had two mountains, of 500 
and 1000 feet respectively, we guessed. All around 
it ran the beach of pure white sand and, farther out, 
the coral reef encircled it completely. 


CHAPTER IV 


THE FIGHT WITH A SHARK 

F OR several days after the excursion related in 
the last chapter we did not wander far from our 
encampment, but gave ourselves up to forming 
plans and making our present abode comfortable. 

There were various causes that induced this state 
of comparative inaction. In the first place, although 
everything around us was so delightful, and we could 
without difficulty obtain all that we required for our 
bodily comfort, we did not quite like the idea of 
settling down here for the rest of our lives, far away 
from our friends and our native land. To set ener¬ 
getically about preparations for a permanent resi¬ 
dence seemed so like making up our minds to saying 
adieu to home and friends for ever, that we tacitly 
shrank from it and put off our preparations, for one 
reason or another, as long as we could. Then there 
was a little uncertainty still as to there being natives 
on the island, and we entertained a kind of faint 
hope that a ship might come and take us off. But 
as day after day passed, and neither savages nor ships 
appeared, we gave up all hope of an early deliverance 
and set diligently to work at our homestead. 


28 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


One day Peterkin came up from the beach, where 
he had been angling, and said in a very cross tone, 
Til tell you what, }ack, Tm not going to be hum¬ 
bugged with catching such contemptible little fel¬ 
lows any longer. I want you to swim out with me 
on your back, and let me fish in deep water!” 

“Dear me, Peterkin,” replied Jack, “I had no idea 
you were taking the thing so much to heart, else I 
would have got you out of that difficulty long ago. 
Let me see,”—and Jack looked down at a piece of 
timber on which he had been laboring, with a 
peculiar gaze of abstraction which he always assumed 
when trying to invent or discover anything. 

“What say you to building a boat?” he inquired, 
looking up hastily. 

“Take far too long,” was the reply; “can’t be 
bothered waiting. I want to begin at once!” 

Again Jack considered. “I have it!” he cried. 
“We’ll fell a large tree and launch the trunk of it 
in the water, so that when you want to fish you’ve 
nothing to do but to swim out to it.” 

“Would not a small raft do better?” I asked. 

“Much better; but we have no ropes to bind it to¬ 
gether with. Perhaps we may find something here¬ 
after that will do as well, but, in the meantime, let 
us try the tree.” 

After an hour’s work we had cut down a thick 




THE FIGHT WITH A SHARK 


29 


oars with which to propel it. We found that we 
could get on it easily enough, but that once we were 
astride the log, we had the utmost difficulty to keep 
it from rolling round and plunging us into the water. 
Not that we minded that much; but we preferred, if 
possible, to fish in dry clothes. To be sure, our 
trousers were necessarily wet, as our legs were dan¬ 
gling in the water on each side of the log; but as they 
could be easily dried, we did not care. After half- 
an-hour’s practice, we became expert enough to keep 
our balance pretty steadily. Then Peterkin laid down 
his paddle, and having baited his line with a whole 
oyster, dropt it into deep water. 

“Now, then, Jack,” said he, “be cautious; steer 
clear o’ that sea-weed. There! that’s it; gently, now, 
gently. I see a fellow at least a foot long down there, 
coming to-ha! that’s it! Oh! bother, he’s off.” 

“Did he bite ?” said Jack, urging the log onwards. 

“Bite? ay! He took it into his mouth, but the 
moment I began to haul he opened his jaws and let 
it out again.” 

“Let him swallow it next time,” said Jack, laugh¬ 
ing at the melancholy expression of Peterkin’s face. 

“There he is again,” cried Peterkin, his eyes flash¬ 
ing with excitement. “Look out! Now then! No! 
Yes! No! Why, the brute wont swallow it!” 

“Try to haul him up by the mouth, then,” cried 
Jack. “Do it gently.” 


30 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


v 

V 


A heavy sigh and a look of blank despair showed 
that poor Peterkin had tried and failed again. 

“Never mind, lad,” said Jack, in a voice of sym¬ 
pathy; “we’ll move on, and offer our bait to some 
other fish.” So saying, Jack plied his paddle; but 
scarcely had he moved from the spot, when a fish 
with an enormous head and a little body darted from 
under a rock and swallowed the bait at once. 

“Got him this time,—that’s a fact!” cried Peterkin, 
hauling in the line. “He’s swallowed the bait right 
down to his tail, I declare. Oh what a thumper!” 

As the fish came struggling to the surface, we 
leaned forward to see it, and overbalanced the log. 
Peterkin threw his arms around the fish’s neck; and, 
in another instant, the log overturned and we were 
all floundering in the water! 

A shout of laughter burst from us as we rose to the 
surface like three drowned rats and seized hold of the 
log. We soon recovered our position and sat more 
warily, while Peterkin secured the fish, which well- 
nigh escaped in the midst of our struggles. It was 
little worth having, however; but, as Peterkin re¬ 
marked, it was better than the smouts he had been 
catching for the last two or three days; so we laid it 
on the log before us, and having rebaited the line, 
dropped it in again for another. 

Now, while we were thus intent upon our sport, 
our attention was suddenly attracted by a ripple on 


'7 see a fellow at 
least a foot long 
down there" 





THE FIGHT WITH A SHARK 


3i 


the sea, just a few yards away from us. Pcterkin 
shouted to us to paddle in that direction, as he 
thought it was a big fish, and we might have a chance 
of catching it. But Jack, instead of complying, said, 
in a deep, earnest tone of voice, which I never before 
heard him use,— 

“Haul up your line, Peterkin; seize your paddle; 
quick,—it’s a shark!” 

The horror with which we heard this may well 
be imagined, for our legs were hanging down in the 
water, and we could not venture to pull them up 
without upsetting the log. Peterkin instantly hauled 
up the line; and, grasping his paddle, exerted himself 
to the utmost, while we also did our best to make for 
shore. But we were a good way off, and the log 
being very heavy, moved but slowly through the 
water. We now saw the shark quite distinctly swim¬ 
ming round and round us, its sharp fin every now 
and then protruding above the water. 

From its active and unsteady motions, Jack knew 
it was making up its mind to attack us, so he urged us 
vehemently to paddle for our lives, while he himself 
set us the example. Suddenly he shouted, “Look 
out!—there he comes!” and in a second we saw the 
monstrous fish dive close under us, and turn half over 
on his side. But we all made a great commotion 
with our paddles, which no doubt frightened it away 
for that time, as we saw it immediately afterward. 



Haul in your lint, 
Peterkin; it*s a 
sharer 




32 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


“Throw the fish to him,” cried Jack, in a quick, 
suppressed voice; “we’ll make the shore in time yet, 
if we can keep him off for a few minutes.” 

Peterkin stopped one instant to obey the command, 
and then plied his paddle again with all his might. 
No sooner had the fish fallen on the water than we 
observed the shark sink. In another second we saw 
its white breast rising; for sharks always turn over on 
their sides when about to seize their prey, their 
mouths being not at the point of their heads like 
those of other fish, but, as it were, under their chins. 
In another moment his snout rose above the water— 
his wide jaws, armed with a terrific double row of 
teeth, appeared. The dead fish was engulfed, and the 
shark sank out of sight. But Jack was mistaken in 
supposing that it would be satisfied. In a very few 
minutes it returned to us, and its quick motions led 
us to fear that it would attack us at once. 

“Stop paddling,” cried Jack suddenly. “I see it 
coming up behind us. Now, obey my orders quickly. 
Our lives may depend on it. Ralph, Peterkin, do 
your best to balance the log .. Don’t look out for the 
shark. Don’t glance behind you. Do nothing but 
balance the log.” 

Peterkin and I instantly did as we were ordered, 
being only too glad to do anything that afforded us 
a chance or a hope of escape. For a few seconds, that 
seemed long minutes to my mind, we sat thus 





The monster s snout rubbed against the log 
as it passed 






33 






















THE FIGHT WITH A SHARK 


35 


silently; but I could not resist glancing backword, 
despite the orders to the contrary. On doing so, I 
saw Jack sitting rigid like a statue, with his paddle 
raised, his lips compressed, and his eyebrows bent 
over his eyes, which glared savagely from beneath 
them into the water. I also saw the shark, to my 
horror, quite close under the log, in the act of dart¬ 
ing towards Jack's foot. I could scarce suppress a 
cry on beholding this. In another moment the shark 
rose. Jack drew his leg suddenly from the water, 
and threw it over the log. The monster’s snout 
rubbed against the log as it passed, and revealed its 
hideous jaws, into which Jack instantly plunged the 
paddle, and thrust it down its throat. So violent was 
this act that Jack rose to his feet in performing it; 
the log was thereby rolled completely over, and we 
were once more plunged into the water. We all rose, 
spluttering and gasping, in a moment. 

“Now, then, strike out for shore,” cried Jack. 
“Here, Peterkin, catch hold of my collar, and kick 
out with a will.” 

Peterkin did as he was desired, and Jack struck 
out with such force that he cut through the water 
like a boat; while I, being free from all encumbrance, 
succeeded in keeping up with him. As we had by 
this time drawn pretty near to the shore, a few 
minutes more sufficed to carry us into shallow water; 
and we landed in safety, though quite exhausted. 


CHAPTER V 


WATERSPOUTS AND PIGS 

N OW that we had been comfortably established 
in our quarters for some time, we began to 
plan a trip of exploration around the whole 
island. Jack proposed that we should supply our¬ 
selves with good defensive arms, for, as we intended 
to ascend most of the valleys as well as to encircle 
the shore before returning home, we should likely 
meet with, he would not say dangers , but, at least, 
with everything that existed on the island, whatever 
that might be. 

“ Besides,” he said, “since there are many small 
birds among the trees which we might find good 
to eat, I think it would be a capital plan to make 
bows and arrows to shoot them.” 

“First rate!” cried Peterkin. “You will make 
the bows, Jack, and I’ll try my hand at the arrows. 
The fact is, I’m quite tired of throwing stones at 
the birds. I began the very day we landed, I think, 
and have persevered up to the present time, but I’ve 
never hit anything yet.” 

“You forget,” said I, “you happened to hit me one 
day on the shin!” 


36 


WATERSPOUTS AND PIGS 


37 


“Ah, true/’ replied Petcrkin, “and a precious 
shindy you kicked up in consequence. But you were 
at least four yards away from the impudent paroquet 
I aimed at; so you see what a horribly bad shot I am.” 

As it turned out, however, Jack made a bow and 
arrows for himself only, while Peterkin and I con¬ 
structed weapons which were better suited to our 
degrees of prowess. Peterkin had drawn a long 
pole into the tent, and was attempting to fit a small 
piece of the hoop-iron to the end of it. 

“I’m going to enlist in the Lancers,” he announced. 
“You see, Jack, I find the club rather an unwieldy 
instrument for my delicately formed muscles, and 
I flatter myself I shall do a great deal more execution 
with a spear.” 

“Well, if length constitutes power,” said Jack, 
“you’ll certainly be invincible.” 

The pole which Peterkin had cut was full twelve 
feet long, being a very strong but light and tough 
young tree, which merely required thinning at the 
butt to be a very serviceable weapon. 

“That’s a very good idea,” said I. 

“Which—this?” inquired Peterkin, pointing to 
the spear. 

“Yes,” I replied. 

“Humph!” said he, “you’d find it a pretty tough 
and matter-of-fact idea, if you had it stuck through 
your gizzard, old boy!” 


“I shall do more exe¬ 
cution with a spear ' 







THE CORAL ISLAND 


“I mean the idea of making it is a good one,” 
said I, laughing. “And now I think of it, I’ll change 
my plan, too. I don’t think much of a club, so I’ll 
make a sling out of this piece of cloth.” The cloth 
I referred to was a substance remarkably like coarse 
brown cotton cloth which we found wrapped around 
the ends of the branches on the cocoanut palms. 

After a day spent in practicing our weapons, we 
set out early one morning on our journey. After 
passing the ridge of land that formed one side of our 
valley, we beheld another small vale lying before 
us in all the luxuriant loveliness of tropical vegetation. 
We had, indeed, seen it before from the mountain- 
top, but we had no idea that it would turn out to 
be so much more lovely when we were close to it. 
We were about to commence the exploration of this 
valley, when Peterkin stopped us and directed our 
attention to a very remarkable appearance in advance 
along the shore. 

“What’s yon, think you?” said he, levelling his 
spear, as if he expected an immediate attack from the 
object in question, though it was fully a half-a-mile 
distant from where we stood. 

As he spoke, there appeared a white column above 
the rocks, as if of steam or spray. It rose upwards 
to a height of several feet, and then disappeared. 
Had this been near the sea, we would not have been 
so greatly surprised, as it might in that case have 


WATERSPOUTS AND PIGS 


39 


been the surf, for at this part of the coast the coral 
reef approached so near to the island that in some 
parts it almost joined it. But this white column 
appeared about fifty yards inland. The rocks at 
the place were rugged, and they stretched across 
the sandy beach into the sea. Scarce had we ceased 
expressing our surprise at this sight, when another 
column flew upwards for a few seconds, not far 
from the spot where the first had been seen, and 
disappeared; and so, at long irregular intervals, these 
strange sights recurred. We were now quite sure 
that the columns were watery or composed of spray, 
but what caused them we could not guess, so we 
determined to go and see. 

In a few minutes we gained the spot, which was 
very rugged and precipitous, and, moreover, quite 
damp with the falling of the spray. We had much 
ado to pass over dry-shod. The ground also was full 
of holes here and there. Now, while we stood 
anxiously waiting for the reappearance of these 
water-spouts, we heard a low, rumbling sound near 
us, which quickly increased to a gurgling and hissing 
noise, and a moment afterwards a thick spout of 
water burst upwards from a hole in the rock, and 
spouted into the air with much violence. We sprang 
to one side, but not before a cloud of spray descended, 
and drenched us both to the skin. 

Peterkin, who was standing farther off, escaped 


4 o 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


with a few drops, and burst into an uncontrollable 
fit of laughter on beholding our miserable plight. 

“Mind your eye!’* he shouted eagerly, “there goes 
another!” The words were scarcely out of his mouth 
when there came up a spout from another hole, 
which served us exactly in the same manner as before. 

Peterkin now shrieked with laughter; but his 
merriment was put to an abrupt stop by the gurgling 
noise occurring close to where he stood. 

“Where’ll it spout this time, I wonder?” he said, 
looking about with some anxiety, and preparing to 
run. Suddenly there came a loud hiss or snort; a 
fierce spout of water burst up between Peterkin’s 
legs, blew him off his feet, enveloped him in its 
spray, and hurled him to the ground. He fell with 
so much violence that we feared he must have broken 
some of his bones, and ran anxiously to his assistance. 
But fortunately he had fallen on a clump of tangled 
herbage, in which he lay sprawling in a most 
deplorable condition. 

It was now our turn to laugh; but as we were not 
yet quite sure that he was unhurt, and as we knew 
not when or where the next spout might arise, we 
assisted him hastily to jump up and hurry from 
the spot. 

In about an hour after this mishap our clothes 
were again dried. While they were hanging up 
before the fire, we walked down to the beach, and 


A fierce spout of 
water burst be¬ 
tween Peterfyris 
legs 











WATERSPOUTS AND PIGS 


4* 


soon observed that these curious spouts took place 
immediately after the fall of a huge wave, never 
before it; and, moreover, that the spouts did not take 
place excepting when the billow was an extremely 
large one. From this we concluded that there must 
be a subterranean channel in the rock into which 
the water was driven by the larger waves, and finding 
no way of escape except through these small holes, 
was thus forced up violently through them. At any 
rate, we could not conceive any other reason for 
these strange waterspouts, and as this seemed a very 
simple and probable one, we forthwith adopted it. 

We then turned back to the examination of the 
interior of the island, and spent the greater part 
of the day wandering through the densely wooded 
valleys, as one led into the other, observing new 
species of trees and shrubs, and strange and beautiful 
birds as they flew around us. Now, as we neared the 
shore, Jack and I said that we would go a little out 
of our way to see if we could procure a duck from 
a flock which had flown over us. Peterkin went on 
to the shore to kindle a fire, and we promised to 
rejoin him speedily. But we did not find the ducks, 
although we made a diligent search for half an hour. 
We were about to retrace our steps, when we were 
arrested by one of the strangest sights that we had 
yet beheld on the island. 

Just in front of us, at the distance of about ten 


42 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


yards, grew a superb tree, which certainly was the 
largest we had yet seen on the island. Its trunk was 
at least five feet in diameter, with a smooth gray 
bark; above this the spreading branches were clothed 
with light green leaves, amid which were clusters 
of bright yellow fruit, so numerous as to weigh down 
the boughs with their great weight. The ground at 
the foot of this tree was thickly strewn with the 
fallen fruit, which seemed to be of the plum species, 
and in the midst of it lay sleeping, in every possible 
attitude, at least twenty hogs of all ages and sizes, 
apparently quite surfeited with a recent banquet. 

Jack and I could scarce restrain our laughter as 
we gazed at these coarse, fat, ill-looking animals, 
while they lay groaning and snoring heavily amid 
the remains of their supper. 

“Now, Ralph,” said Jack, in a low whisper, “put 
a stone in your sling—a good big one—and let fly 
at that fat fellow with his back toward you. I’ll 
try to put an arrow into yon little pig.” 

“Don’t you think we had better wake them up 
first?” I whispered; “it seems cruel to kill them while 
they are asleep.” 

“If I wanted sport, Ralph, I would certainly give 
them a chance for their lives. But as we want only 
por\, we’ll let them lie. Besides, we’re not sure of 
killing them; so fire away.” 

Thus admonished, I slung my stone with such 


WATERSPOUTS AND PIGS 43 

good aim that it went bang against the hog’s flank 
as if against the head of a drum; but it had no other 
effect than that of causing the animal to start to its 
feet, with a frightful yell of surprise, and scamper 
away. At the same instant Jack’s bow twanged, and 
the arrow pinned the little pig to the ground by 
the ear. 

“I’ve missed, after all,” cried Jack, darting forward 
with uplifted axe, while the little pig uttered a loud 
squeal, tore the arrow from the ground, and ran 
away with it along with the whole drove into the 
bushes and disappeared, though we heard them 
screaming long afterwards in the distance. 

“That’s very provoking, now,” said Jack, rubbing 
the point of his nose. 

“Very,” I replied, stroking my chin. 

“Well, we must make haste and rejoin Peterkin,” 
said Jack. “It’s getting late.” And without further 
remark, we threaded our way quickly through the 
woods towards the shore. 

When we reached it, we found wood laid out, 
the fire lighted and beginning to kindle up, with 
other signs of preparation for our encampment, but 
Peterkin was nowhere to be found. We wondered 
very much at this; but Jack suggested that he might 
have gone to fetch water; so he gave a shout to 
let him know that we had arrived, and sat down 
upon a rock, while I threw off my jacket and seized 


At the same instant 
]act(s bow twanged 




44 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


the axe, intending to split up one or two billets of 
wood. But I had scarce moved from the spot, when, 
in the distance, we heard a most appalling shriek, 
which was followed up by a chorus of yells from 
the hogs, and a loud “hurrah!” 

“I do believe,” said I, “that Peterkin has met with 
the hogs.” 

“When Greek meets Greek,” said Jack, “then 
comes the tug of war.” 

“Hurrah!” shouted Peterkin in the distance. 

We turned hastily towards the direction whence 
the sound came, and soon descried Peterkin walking 
along the beach towards us with a little pig trans¬ 
fixed on the end of his long spear! 

“Well done, my boy!” exclaimed Jack, slapping 
him on the shoulder when he came up, “you’re the 
best shot amongst us.” 

“Look here, Jack!” cried Peterkin, as he disengaged 
the animal from his spear. “Do you recognise that 
hole?” said he, pointing to the pig’s ear; “and are 
you familiar with this arrow, eh?” 

“Well, I declare!” said Jack. 

We now set about preparing supper; and truly 
a good display of viands we made, when all was 
laid out on a flat rock in the light of the blazing fire. 
And so, having eaten our fill, we laid ourselves down 
to sleep upon a couch of branches. 


CHAPTER VI 


THE BATTLE OF THE SAVAGES 

F OR many months after this we continued to 
live on our island in uninterrupted harmony 
and happiness. Sometimes we went out a-fish- 
ing in the lagoon, and sometimes went a-hunting 
in the woods, or ascended to the mountain top, by 
way of variety. One day Jack and I were sitting, as 
we were often wont to do, on the rocks at Spouting 
Cliff, and Peterkin was wringing the water from 
his garments, having recently fallen by accident 
into the sea—a thing he was constantly doing— 
when our attention was suddenly arrested by two 
objects which appeared on the horizon. 

“What do you think those are yonder?” I said, 
addressing Jack. 

“I can’t imagine,” he answered. “I’ve noticed 
them for some time, and fancied they were black 
sea-gulls, but the more I look at them the more I 
feel convinced they are much larger than gulls.” 
“They seem to be coming towards us,” said I. 
“Hallo! what’s wrong?” inquired Peterkin, coming 
up to where we were sitting. 

“Look there,” said Jack. 


45 


4 6 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


“Whales!” cried Peterkin, shading his eyes with 
his hands. “No! eh! Can they be boats, Jack?” 

Our hearts beat with excitement at the very thought 
of seeing human faces again. 

“I think you are about right, Peterkin—but they 
seem to me to move strangely for boats,” said Jack, 
in a low tone, as if he were talking to himself. 

I noticed that a shade of anxiety crossed Jack’s 
countenance as he gazed long and intently at the 
two objects, which were now nearing us fast. At 
last he sprang to his feet. “They are canoes, Ralph! 
Whether war-canoes or not I cannot tell, but this I 
know, that all the natives of the South Sea Islands 
are fierce cannibals, and they have little respect for 
strangers. We must hide if they land here, which 
I earnestly hope they will not do.” 

I was greatly alarmed at Jack’s speech, but I con¬ 
fess I thought less of what he said than of the earnest, 
anxious manner in which he said it, and it was with 
very uncomfortable feelings that Peterkin and I 
followed him quickly into the woods. 

“How unfortunate,” said I, as we gained the 
shelter of the bushes, “that we have forgotten to 
bring our arms.” 

“It matters not,” said Jack; “here are clubs enough 
and to spare.” As he spoke, he laid his hand on a 
bundle of stout poles of various sizes, which Peter- 
kin’s ever-busy hands had formed, during our 



“We must hide if 
they land here” 





Their short paddles flashed li\e meteors in 
the water 


47 











THE BATTLE OF THE SAVAGES 


49 


frequent visits to the cliff, for no other purpose, 
apparently, than that of having something to do. 

We each selected a stout club according to our 
several tastes, and lay down behind a rock, whence 
we could see the canoes approach, without ourselves 
being seen. At first we made an occasional remark 
on their appearance, but after they entered the 
lagoon, and drew near the beach, we ceased to speak, 
and gazed with intense interest at the scene before us. 

We now observed that the foremost canoe was 
being chased by the other, and that it contained a 
few women and children, as well as men,—perhaps 
forty souls altogether; while the canoe which pur¬ 
sued it contained only men. They seemed to be 
about the same in number, but were better armed 
and had the appearance of being a war party. Both 
crews were paddling with all their might, and it 
seemed as if the pursuers exerted themselves to 
overtake the fugitives ere they could land. In this, 
however, they failed. The foremost canoe made for 
the beach close beneath the rocks behind which we 
were concealed. Their short paddles flashed like 
meteors in the water, and sent up a constant shower 
of spray. The foam curled from the prow, and the 
eyes of the rowers glistened in their black faces as 
they strained every muscle of their naked bodies; 
nor did they relax their efforts till the canoe struck 
the beach with a violent shock; then, with a shout 


50 


THE CORAL ISLAND 





of defiance, the whole party sprang as if by magic 
from the canoe to the shore. Three women, two 
of whom carried infants in their arms, rushed into 
the woods; and the men crowded to the water’s 
edge, with stones in their hands, spears levelled, and 
clubs brandished, to resist the landing of their 
enemies who still pursued them. 

The distance between the two canoes had been 
about half a mile, and at the great speed they were 
going, this was soon passed. As the pursuers neared 
the shore, no sign of fear or hesitation was noticeable. 
On they came like a wild charger,—received but 
recked not of a shower of stones. The canoe struck, 
and with a yell that seemed to issue from the throats 
of incarnate fiends they leaped into the water, and 
drove their enemies up the beach. 

The battle that immediately ensued was frightful 
to behold. Most of the men wielded clubs of enor¬ 
mous size and curious shapes, with which they 
dashed out each other’s brains. As they were almost 
entirely naked, and had to bound, stoop, leap, and 
run, in their terrible hand-to-hand encounters, they 
looked more like demons than human beings. I 
felt my heart grow sick at the sight of this bloody 
battle, and would fain have turned away, but a 
species of fascination seemed to hold me down and 
glue my eyes upon the combatants. 

I observed that the attacking party was led by a 

Most of the men 
wielded clubs of 
enwmous size 
and curious 
shapes 


m 


THE BATTLE OF THE SAVAGES 


5i 


most extraordinary being, who from his size and 
peculiarity I concluded was a chief. His hair was 
frizzed out to an enormous extent, so that it re¬ 
sembled a large turban. It was of a light yellow 
hue, which surprised me much, for the man’s body 
was as black as coal, and I felt convinced that the 
hair must have been dyed. He was tattooed from 
head to foot; and his face, besides being tattooed, 
was besmeared with red paint, and streaked with 
white. Altogether, with his yellow turban-like hair, 
his Herculean black frame, his glittering eyes and 
white teeth, he seemed the most terrible monster 
I ever beheld. He was very active in the fight, and 
had already killed four men. 

Suddenly the yellow-haired chief was attacked by 
a man quite as strong and large as himself. He 
flourished a heavy club something like an eagle’s beak 
at the point. For a second or two these giants eyed 
each other warily, moving round and round, as if to 
catch each other at a disadvantage, but seeing that 
nothing was to be gained by this caution, and that the 
loss of time might effectually turn the tide of battle 
either way, they apparently made up their minds to 
attack at the same instant. With a wild shout and 
simultaneous spring, they swung their heavy clubs, 
which met with a loud report. Suddenly the yellow¬ 
haired savage tripped, his enemy sprang forward, 
the ponderous club was swung, but it did not de- 



THE CORAL ISLAND 


52 



scend, for at that moment the savage was felled to 
the ground by a stone from the hand of one who 
had witnessed his chiefs danger. This was the turn¬ 
ing-point in the battle. The savages who landed first 
turned and fled towards the bush, on seeing the fall 
of their chief. But not one escaped. They were all 
overtaken and felled to the earth. I saw, however, 
that they were not all killed. Indeed, their enemies 
now that they had conquered, seemed anxious to 
take them alive; and they succeeded in securing 
fifteen, whom they bound hand and foot with cords, 
and, carrying them up into the woods, laid them 
down among the bushes. Here they left them, for 
what purpose I knew not, and returned to the scene 
of the late battle, where the remnant of the party 
were bathing their wounds. 

Out of the forty blacks that composed the attacking 
party, only twenty-eight remained alive, two of 
whom were sent into the bush to hunt for the women 
and children. Of the other party, as I have said, only 
fifteen survived, and these were lying bound and 
helpless on the grass. 

Jack and Peterkin and I now looked at each other, 
and whispered our fears that the savages might 
clamber up the rocks to search for fresh water, and 
so discover our place of concealment; but we were 
so much interested in watching their movements that 
we agreed to remain where we were; and, indeed, 


A dreadful feeling 
of horror crept 
over my heart 




THE BATTLE OF THE SAVAGES 


53 


we could not easily have risen without exposing our¬ 
selves to detection. One of the savages now went up 
to the wood and soon returned with a bundle of fire¬ 
wood, and we were not a little surprised to see him 
set fire to it by the very same means used by Jack the 
time we made our first fire,—namely, with the bow 
and drill. When the fire was kindled, two of the 
party went again to the woods and returned with 
one of the bound men. A dreadful feeling of horror 
crept over my heart, as the thought flashed upon me 
that they were going to burn their enemies. As they 
bore him to the fire my feelings almost overpowered 
me. I gasped for breath, and seizing my club, en¬ 
deavored to spring to my feet; but Jack’s powerful 
arm pinned me to the earth. Next moment one of 
the savages raised his club, and fractured the 
wretched creature’s skull. He must have died in¬ 
stantly, and, strange though it may seem, I confess 
to a feeling of relief when the deed was done, because 
I knew that the poor savage could not now be 
burned alive. 

Suddenly there arose a cry from the woods, and, in 
a few seconds, the two savages hastened towards the 
fire dragging the three women and their two infants 
along with them. One of those women was much 
younger than her companions, and we were struck 
with the modesty of her demeanor and the gentle 
expression of her face, which, although she had the 



54 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


flattish nose and thick lips of the others, was of a 
light-brown color, and we conjectured that she must 
be of a different race. She and her companions wore 
short petticoats and a kind of scarf on their shoulders. 
Their hair was jet black, but instead of being long, 
was short and curly,—though not woolly—some¬ 
what like the hair of a young boy. While we gazed 
with interest and some anxiety at these poor creatures, 
the big chief advanced to one of the elder females and 
laid his hand upon the child. But the mother shrank 
from him, and clasping the little one to her bosom, 
uttered a wail of fear. With a savage laugh, the chief 
tore the child from her arms and tossed it into the 
sea. A low groan burst from Jack’s lips as we wit¬ 
nessed this atrocious act and heard the mother’s 
shriek, as she fell insensible on the sand. The rip¬ 
pling waves rolled the child on the beach, as if they 
refused to be a party in such a foul murder, and we 
could observe that the little one still lived. 

The young girl was now brought forward, and the 
chief addressed her; but although we heard his voice, 
and even the words distinctly, of course we could not 
understand what he said. The girl made no answer 
to his fierce questions, and we saw by the way in 
which he pointed to the blazing fire that he threat¬ 
ened her life. 

“Peterkin,” said Jack in a hoarse whisper, “have 
you got your knife?” 


THE BATTLE OF THE SAVAGES 


55 


“Yes,” replied Peterkin, whose face was tense and 
pale as death. 

“That will do. Listen to me, and do my bidding 
quick. Here is the small knife, Ralph. Fly both of 
you through the bush, cut the cords that bind the 
prisoners and set them free. There, quick, ere it be 
too late.” Jack sprang up and seized a heavy but 
short bludgeon, while his strong frame trembled 
with emotion, and large drops of sweat rolled down 
his forehead. 

At this moment the man who had butchered the 
savage a few minutes before advanced towards the 
girl with his heavy club. Jack uttered a yell that 
rang like a death-shriek among the rocks. With one 
bound he leaped over a precipice full ten feet high, 
and before the savages had recovered from their sur¬ 
prise was in the midst of them; while Peterkin and I 
dashed through the bushes towards the prisoners. 
With one blow of his staff Jack felled the man with 
the club, then, turning round with a look of fury, 
he rushed upon the big chief with the yellow hair. 
Had the blow which Jack aimed at his head taken 
effect, the huge savage would have needed no second 
stroke; but he was agile as a cat, and avoided it by 
springing to one side. At the same time he swung 
his ponderous club at the head of his foe. It was now 
Jack’s turn to leap aside, and well was it for him that 
the first outburst of his blind fury was over, else he 


With one bound he 
was in the midst 
of them 

4 ’ 



5 6 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


had become an easy prey to his gigantic antagonist. 
But Jack was cool now. He darted his blows rapidly 
and well, and the superiority of his light weapon was 
strikingly proved in this combat, for while he could 
easily evade the blows of the chief’s heavy club, the 
chief could not so easily evade those of Jack’s light 
one. Nevertheless, so quick was he, and so fright¬ 
fully did he fling about the mighty weapon, that al¬ 
though Jack struck him almost every blow the 
strokes had to be delivered so quickly that they 
lacked force to be very effectual. 

It was lucky for Jack that the other savages con¬ 
sidered the success of their chief in this encounter 
to be so certain that they refrained from interfering. 
Had they doubted it, they would have probably 
ended the matter at once by felling him. But they 
contented themselves with awaiting the issue. 

The force which the chief expended in wielding 
his club now began to be apparent. His movements 
became slower, his breath hissed through his clenched 
teeth, and the surprised savages drew nearer in order 
to render assistance. Jack observed this movement. 
He felt that his fate was sealed and resolved to cast 
his life upon the next blow. The chief’s club was 
again about to descend on his head. He might have 
dodged it easily, but instead of doing so he suddenly 
shortened his grasp of his own club, rushed in under 
the blow, struck his adversary right between the eyes 



At the same time he swung his ponderous 
club at the head of his foe 


57 



























THE BATTLE OF THE SAVAGES 


59 


with all his force, and fell to the earth, crushed be¬ 
neath the senseless body of the chief. A dozen clubs 
Hew high in air ready to descend on the head of Jack, 
but they hesitated a moment, for the massive body of 
the chief completely covered him. That moment 
saved our friend’s life. Ere the savages could tear 
the chief’s body away, seven of their number fell 
prostrate beneath the clubs of the prisoners whom 
Peterkin and I had set free, and two others fell under 
our own hand. We could never have accomplished 
this had not our enemies been so intent upon the fight 
between Jack and their chief that they failed to ob¬ 
serve us until we were upon them. They still out¬ 
numbered our party by three, but we were flushed 
with victory while they were taken by surprise and 
dispirited by the fall of their chief. Moreover, they 
were awe-struck by the sweeping fury of Jack, who 
seemed to have lost his senses altogether, and had no 
sooner shaken himself free of the chief’s body than 
he rushed into the midst of them, and in three blows 
equalized our numbers. Peterkin and I flew to the 
rescue, the savages followed us, and, in less than ten 
minutes, all our opponents were knocked down or 
made prisoners, bound hand and foot, and extended 
side by side upon the sea shore. 


Peterkin and 1 set 
the prisoners free 



CHAPTER VII 


THE LAST OF OUR ISLAND 

A FTER the battle was over, the savages crowded 
round us and gazed at us in surprise, while 
they continued to pour upon us a flood of 
questions, which, because we could not understand, 
of course we could not answer. However, by way 
of putting an end to it, Jack took the chief (who had 
recovered from the effects of his wound) by the hand 
and shook it warmly. No sooner did the blacks see 
that this was meant to express good-will than they 
shook hands with us all round. After this ceremony 
was gone through, Jack went up to the girl who had 
never once moved from the rock where she had been 
left, but had continued an eager spectator of all that 
had passed. He made signs to her to follow him, 
and then, taking the chief by the hand, was about 
to conduct him to the bower, when his eyes fell on 
the poor infant which had been thrown into the sea 
and was still lying on the shore. Dropping the chief’s 
hand he hastened towards it, and, to his great joy, 
found it to be still alive. We also found that the 
mother was beginning to recover slowly. 

“Here, get out o’ the way,” said Jack, pushing us 


60 


THE LAST OF OUR ISLAND 


61 


aside, as we stooped over the poor woman and en¬ 
deavored to restore her. “1*11 soon bring her round.” 
So saying, he placed the infant on her bosom and laid 
its warm cheek on hers. The effect was wonderful. 
The woman opened her eyes, felt the child, looked at 
it, and with a cry of joy clasped it in her arms, at 
the same time attempting to rise, for the purpose, 
apparently, of rushing into the woods. 

“There, that’s all right,” said Jack, once more tak¬ 
ing the chief by the hand. “Now, Ralph and Peter- 
kin, make the women and these fellows follow me 
to the bower. We’ll entertain them as hospitably as 
we can.” 

In a few minutes the savages were all seated on the 
ground in front of the bower making a hearty meal 
off a cold roast pig, several ducks, and a variety of 
cold fish, together with an unlimited supply of cocoa- 
nuts, breadfruit, yams, taro, and plums; with all of 
which they seemed to be quite familiar and perfectly 
satisfied. 

Meanwhile, we three being thoroughly knocked 
up with our day’s work, took a good draught of 
cocoanut lemonade, and throwing ourselves on our 
beds fell fast asleep. The savages, it seems, followed 
our example, and in half an hour the whole camp 
was buried in repose. 

The next three or four days were spent by the sav¬ 
ages in mending their canoe, which had been dam- 


62 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


aged by the violent shock it had sustained on striking 
the shore. When it was ready, we assisted the natives 
to carry the prisoners into it, and helped them to load 
it with provisions and fruit. Peterkin also went to 
the plum-tree for the purpose of making a special 
onslaught upon the hogs, and killed no less than six 
of them. These we baked and presented to our 
friends on the day of their departure. On that day 
the chief made a great many energetic signs to us, 
which, after much consideration, we came to under¬ 
stand were proposals that we should go away with 
him to his island. This, on Jack’s advice, we decided 
to do, as he urged us to seize this opportunity to learn 
something more of our whereabouts under the pro¬ 
tection of friendly people. He had hopes, he said, 
that we might discover some means of returning to 
England sooner if we left our island, which, however 
delightful, seemed to be off the usual path of trade; 
and he pointed out to us that we could always secure 
a boat to return to our own island if we wished. 
Thus, convinced by him, we made ready to embark 
with our friends, and a couple of hours later were out 
of sight of our coral reef. 

Some hours after nightfall we arrived at our desti¬ 
nation, an island which turned out to be very much 
like the one we had left, only considerably larger. 
We were given a hut for the night and despite our 
curiosity as to our immediate future were soon asleep. 


THE LAST OF OUR ISLAND 


63 


The next morning we were awakened by a voice 
outside our door. Jack got up to admit a mild-look- 
ing native, of apparently forty years of age who, tak¬ 
ing off his straw hat, made us a low bow. He was 
clad in a respectable suit of European clothes; and 
the first words he uttered, as he stepped up to Jack 
and shook hands with him, were— 

“Good day, gentlemen; we are happy to see you at 
Mango—you are heartily welcome.” 

After returning his salutation, Jack exclaimed, 
“You must be a native missionary teacher on the 
island—are you not?” 

“I am,” was the answer. “I have the joy to be a 
servant of the Lord Jesus sent to preach His gospel to 
the unbelievers on this island.” 

Then, seating himself at our invitation, he in¬ 
formed us that on hearing of our arrival he had 
thought that we might be interested to know that in 
a few days the missionary ship was sailing back to 
the station, which was a frequent port of call for 
traders among the South Sea Islands. If we were 
desirous of leaving the Islands we could return with 
this vessel and await a boat which would take us 
back to our homes. 

It was a bright clear morning when we set sail from 
the shores of Mango. Just as we passed through the 
channel in the reef the natives gave us a loud cheer. 
That night, as we sat on the taffrail, gazing out upon 


64 


THE CORAL ISLAND 


the wide sea and up into the starry firmament, a thrill 
of joy, strangely mixed with sadness, passed through 
our hearts—for soon we would be “homeward 
bound” and leaving far behind us the beautiful, 
bright, green coral islands of the Pacific Ocean. 
















































































